Gameplay is the only one that really matters, all the others are subjective. There are numerous examples of games that completely omits one or more of the other features but are still brilliant in their own right.
I find it very difficult to rank those features because as long as the gameplay is good I can forgive any of the others for being bad or even non-existent.

The most important aspect of a game? Being able to play it, for one thing. That's why gameplay's up at the top. It doesn't have to reinvent the wheel, but if it's fun I'll give it a try.

I appreciate art direction more than anything else. If a game has the right art style and atmosphere, it all comes together much better than having HD graphics but with varying artistic styles. A single, coherent style that expresses the game's ideas properly is necessary. I don't want rainbows popping out of monsters when I kill them in a game that's supposed to be dark and scary. ...Or do I...?

Music I put in the middle, because repetitive or boring music gets on my nerves FAST. It should shine but not overpower, that is unless the game's about music.

I'm not looking for graphics, but it's hard to knock it down completely IMO. A game can have a good artstyle, but depending on how well the game utilizes the platform, it can go either way. Some game ideas are better with high definition, some a little less. But if it's fun and appealing to the eye, I'm not one to care what the resolution is or all of that other stuff.

I don't care about story. A lot of games I play are fine without plot explanations or cutscenes (Doom is my primary example). Some games have simple stories, mostly older games like Super Mario Bros. and Doom. That's all they need, really, and I'm okay with that. I've played games where story does matter (aka Phoenix Wright and Monkey Island), but it's usually not what I'm after in, say, action games. All I'm saying is that whether or not the story's there, it doesn't matter to me.

Gameplay
Let's face it, you get a game to play it. Not to stare at it and concentrate on every little detail. If gameplay is good, the game in general is GOOD. It's only GREAT if the everything is is good.Story
A good story also makes the game worth your while if the other subjects aren't as good as anticipated. Story is one reason why inFAMOUS, Uncharted,(1 & 2), and Heavy Rain are my favorite games.Graphics
Graphics can be important in an aspect... if objects in a game are recognizable as objects, it's fine. I don't care about the amount of polygons in an object. I care about how easy it is to know what something is. For example, I don't want to play a game that looks like a 240p Youtube video. I don't want it to be blurry or shit like that.Art Direction
The way a game looks can define the game itself. Okami, Wind Waker, both noteable games not just because of how good they are, but because of how they LOOK. If Okami looked like Uncharted or something, it wouldn't be that good.Music
I'm not saying that music is unimportant. But I think it's the least important. Hearing a beautiful tune as soon as you jump into a game is something that can give you a feel of what the game will be like. Maybe it will be calm, bouncy, suspenseful, or intense. Bad music can be something that takes a small part of enjoyment out of the game *cough*inFAMOUS.*cough*

At 10/15/11 02:30 PM, Chdonga wrote:
And plot is he least important thing in a videogame.

PLOT IS IMPORTANT.

Only in a game that focuses on plot.

What I said is more just my opinion on what people should actually focus on, since I'm always seeing people say how bad a game is because of the game having a weird plot. I should've specified that. I know that now.

At 10/15/11 09:50 PM, Chdonga wrote:
Only in a game that focuses on plot.

What I said is more just my opinion on what people should actually focus on, since I'm always seeing people say how bad a game is because of the game having a weird plot. I should've specified that. I know that now.

I guess it's a toss up between gameplay and music. For me my argument would be OoT and MM. Both games came out over a decade ago yet I can replay them and enjoy them just as much I would a top end title that came out this year, for example Bastion, amazing OST and the gameplay felt unique and that narration was excellent.

A good story is nice but I don't need twists at every point to enjoy something too twists can be derivative to a story. As long as something fills the basic archetypes it's set to go.